Mumbai, the financial capital of India, is in the grip of violence and turmoil these days; all because of a novice politician who is hell-bent on proving himself as the greatest savior of Maratha pride, second only to the legendary Shivaji of 17th Century. What has Amitabh Bachchan done for Maharashtra? A question that is often asked, without realizing that Amitabh Bachchan has done more for not just Maharashtra but for the whole of India, more than all the activities of the Shiv Sena leaders and the sainiks put together. Forgotten is the fact that Mumbai is not just the capital of Maharashtra, but is the economic capital of India and denying entry into Mumbai, of people from the rest of India, is destroying the very concept of “One India, One People”.

In addition to this, North Indian students were bashed up during the railway recruitment board exam. If Raj Thackeray’s Navnirman Sena – Maharashtra Nav Nirman Sena (MNS) – prevents people from other parts of India to enter Mumbai, what will prevent ‘outsiders’ from stopping the ‘Marathi manus’ from crossing Maharashtra’s border, since he will be an ‘alien’ in the MNS lingo? Logic has never been a Shiv Sena strong point.

In my opinion, these activists are not members of a political party. They are goons and criminals. The nation is in rage and strong protests against Raj Thackray have started in the country (especially in North India). In a democratic country like India, everybody has the right to move freely and earn his livelihood wherever he wants. Our constitution guarantees this by means of Fundamental Rights. There is no discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, religion or any regional basis. But Mr. Raj Thackeray appears to be totally ignorant about our constitution and its contents. He is behaving like a novice and his actions have already made him extremely unpopular among the masses.

Raj Thackeray deserves to go to jail, and be locked up there so that he can sit alone and ponder about it. Ironically, he must realize what he has done to ruin and tarnish the feel of Maharastra. He has provoked the MNS activists to bloody the city streets, in the process of trying to glorify the Marathas. He is ruining the very name he strives to glorify. The Infosys and Wipro – and the other foreign firms who are paranoid about security – are watching Pune, which isn’t as cosmopolitan and is more vulnerable to the divisive politics. They are now contemplating future growth with raised eyebrows. It is silly on Mr. Thackeray’s behalf and silly on the Corporates’ part to allow one man to dictate the fate of the state. It is insane, actually.